Tuesday, June 30, 2009

These days, every time I put down my thoughts in a post, save it as a textfile to publish on the blog, I end up reading it later and deleting it without posting. Happens each and every time. Almost happened to this one too. :)

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The surprise farewell party I'd been planning for about a month now was a super hit! 14 people showed up, the surprisee was totally surpised, dazed and last I heard, is still recovering. :) There was some delicious cake, yummy pizza, beer and fun and games. We ended up playing Taboo, Charades and Dirty Scrabble and a fishpond-esque game targeted at the surprisee . :) A good time was had by all.

The logistics and the work that went into decision making, planning, keeping it a secret and executing was quite some work, and a lot of fun through out. We had a party planning committee (some of my poor unsuspecting friends got roped in whether they liked it or not) and a lot of details were discussed back and forth..much fun was made of me and my hazaar lengthy emails..that one of the party planning committee members said she was planning to read after the party. Hmph.

My best friend from school and another buddy of mine were part of the whole hoopla. They did all the running around and I didn't even have to ask! They just took care of things as they came along and I was really touched by that. One of them even canceled other plans with family so she could stay on for the party. I am sitting back and thinking of it all, and just so happy that I have friends like that.

My friend S came all the way from Ohio. It was so great to see her . I miss her already.

One of the topics of much debate was whether to have the party outdoors or at home. I wanted to have it at home/ a bar nearby, but felt like people would be happier in the heart of the city, given that several people were coming from out of town. Thankfully, my sis and my friend talked me out of that and convinced me to have it at home. So I went with that, and it was the best decision. It was a rainy evening and weekend, and people were only too happy to be indoors, everyone got along well, and we didn't even need music, that's how much fun we were having via games and plain sitting around and chatting.

I am also glad I finally got to make use of my spacious apartment. A bunch of people stayed over and left Sunday. S left today. It feels suddenly weird, but I'm enjoying the quiet, and basking in the memories of a very fun weekend.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

And I am so thankful for it. Blogging has taken a backseat over the past several months...there's a variety of reasons for that. Today, as I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with general on-goings and then and very low after reading this, I came to the homepage of my blog after ages. And it felt amazingly comforting: familiar, calm and warmly welcome to spill my thoughts. There's a compulsive need to put my worries and thoughts into words here, and I know that it always makes me feel lighter. What's on my mind today?

1) I am beginning to question decisions I once made in an almost "take-for-granted" fashion. Suddenly, I am not so sure. I don't know if that is an innate defense mechanism, or if I really should be questioning these things now.

2) I am a bit cheesed off by certain people and their self-absorption. Seriously: It's not always about you. OK?

3) I really feel like taking the rest of the day off from work. I don't have enough work today to keep me busy, and don't feel like doing anything else.

4) I am not sure if I just want to take time off from work or if I need some time to myself, at home.

5) I went hiking this past weekend. We climbed up a mountain in New England: the first time I did such serious hiking. It was a great experience. ~3000 ft high mountain, sharp, steep and rocky climb for most, with great views along the climb and from the top. It took us 2 hours to ascend to the summit, and was entirely worth it. I was happy to be outdoors, enjoyed pushing my limits and got educated on a lot of hiking.

My favourite bit about the hike was how I was out with two very fit and experienced hikers, who I was slowing down considerably. They were the perfect beginners' companions. Patiently egging me on, encouraging me, taking breaks with me but never crossing the line into being patronizing or overbearing. That made my whole experience so much more enjoyable.

Monday, June 15, 2009

OK: So I'm planning a party this saturday: the plan is to basically get a bunch of friends together, chat, drink and bar hop, and a surprise send-off for a friend. But given the mixed crowd (not everyone knows everyone), I'll need more to do than just that, to keep the party going. Any suggestions for bar-games or other ice-breaking activities? Clubbing and dancing is the last resort, since not all are into stuff like that..so something more interactive/personal.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

My friend S *might* visit me. The very thought brings a smile to my face. We haven't seen each other in over 2 years now, and I am sure her presence along with her awesome hugs will see me through a lot of crap.

I need to put in more effort in fighting off negative thoughts, focusing on the positives. It goes a long way and is much better use of energies. Also need to figure out a way to stop certain people affecting me too much. Pinch of salt, pinch of salt...

When receiving gifts, I was always taught "It's the thought that counts". What thought? , I wonder now. The mere thought behind the act of gifting, or the thought that went into what the gift would be. I see people judging gifts way too often, and I can't help wonder whether they were never taught this simple lesson, or whether there's more to it than just the thought that inspired the gift, that warrants discussions galore about the gift-value, utility, suitability etc. etc.

I am thankful for my hmm-friends. Friends that nod and say hmm when I say something, and when I say the exact opposite thing, and the hmms and nods are still there. :)

I have learned a few good habits over the past couple months: bringing my lunch to work, waking up early to enjoy some quality time by myself instead of jumping out of bed and rushing to work..I am liking it.

Thursday, June 04, 2009

for 2008. Yeah. I called to enquire about the check I was expecting for almost 2 months now, and they tell me I didn't file no returns. Not sure what exactly went wrong, but I suspect a bimbotic mistake on my part.

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Been doing a bit of traveling- meeting up friends, and friends of friends. Have very much enjoyed and basked in the warmth of reception I get from people that don't know me, but were meeting me for the first time as a friend of their friend's.

Has also been nice to be on email/internet breaks. Very liberating.

Am planning a surprise farewell party. Totally excited about it (The surprise part, not the farewell part). The sleuthing and the planning has been fun. Hope that everyone can make it..also excited about hosting such a big group at my apartment. Lets hope it all goes well.

Things are going at a rather fast pace all of a sudden. In some ways, I feel glad, I don't have too much time to sit back and dwell on the uncertainties to follow. Other times, I wish I could slow down, take a deep breath, and take in all that is happening. All in good time, I imagine.

About Me

Just in case you were wondering, I'm not from Ipanema, nor have I ever lived in Brazil (altho' I dream of going there, some day..). I just happened to be listening to that song when this blog was born.
Random passer-by folks, the regulars, comisserators, dissenters, are all very welcome here. Thank-you for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.
For the random troll, however, try to get unnecessarily personal or irrelevently insulting and you just have my virtual equivalent of vunn tiiight SlaP.